Investors are increasingly looking beyond traditional buy-to-let as sales of larger properties with HMO potential at auction record big increases.

EIG Auction Insight reports that many residential landlords are looking for alternative ways to generate returns and that its auction data suggests there is an increasing pool of stock that could support this type of strategy. Sales of four-bedroom properties have risen from 858 in 2021-22 to more than 1,400 in each of the last three years, while transactions involving five-bedroom homes have increased from 225 to almost 400. Larger properties remain a consistent feature of the auction market, with six, seven and even ten-bedroom-plus homes regularly coming under the hammer, says EIG.

Despite rising transaction volumes, average sale prices have remained relatively stable. Four-bedroom properties sold for an average of £277,271 in 2025-26, compared with £285,041 five years earlier, while five-bedroom properties averaged £366,629. This combination of availability and pricing is creating opportunities for investors willing to take a more active approach to property ownership.

Retaining

Some investors are then either retaining all units as long-term investments or selling individual dwellings to release capital while continuing to benefit from the remainder of the scheme.

It explains: “Where separate leasehold titles are created, investors may choose to retain the freehold interest in the building. While leasehold reform continues to evolve, ownership of the freehold can still provide an additional layer of long-term value through building management, future lease extensions and other rights associated with the property. For some investors, this creates an opportunity to build multiple income streams from a single project rather than relying solely on rental receipts.”

Useful

Guide prices provide a useful benchmark for understanding buyer behaviour, adds the firm, which reports that about half of all houses and flats sold within 10% of their guide price throughout the last five years. “The proportion of houses achieving more than 30% above guide fell from 27% in 2021-22 to 19% in 2025-26, while flats declined from 18% to 15% over the same period. At the same time, more than half of all flats continued to sell within 10% of guide, suggesting buyers remain willing to compete for desirable stock but are becoming more disciplined in how far they are prepared to bid above the level indicated by the guide.”

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